On This Date in Sports October 16, 1962: Lineout
In collaboration with the Sportsecyclopedia.com
The New York Yankees win the World Series for the 20th time, beating the San Francisco Giants 1-0 in a thrilling Game 7 at Candlestick Park. The series is redemption for Ralph Terry, who gave up Bill Mazeroski’s home run two years earlier. This time Terry gets a complete game win in Game 7 and wins the Series MVP, as he strands the tying and winning run in scoring position when Willie McCovey lines out to Bobby Richardson to end the game.
The New York Yankees, managed by Ralph Houk, won the American League Pennant with a record of 96-66, while the San Francisco Giants, led by Alvin Dark, needed to beat the Los Angeles Dodgers in a three-game tiebreaker playoff after finishing the 162-game regular season at 101-61. In the opener at Candlestick Park, Whitey Ford continued his World Series dominance, pitching a complete game as the Yankees beat the Giants 6-2. The big blow for the Yankees was a Clete Boyer home run in the seventh inning, which broke a 2-2 tie. The Giants bounced back in Game 2, as Jack Sanford pitched a three-hit shutout, beating Ralph Terry in an old-fashioned pitchers’ duel 2-0, as the Giants' runs came courtesy of an RBI groundout by Matty Alou in the first and a Willie McCovey home run in the seventh inning.
As the series shifted to Yankee Stadium, pitching continued to rule the day, as Bill Stafford of the Yankees and Billy Pierce of the Giants did not allow a run over the first six innings. Finally, in the seventh, the Yankees dented the scoreboard on a two-run base hit by Roger Maris. Maris later scored on an RBI groundout by Clete Boyer. Ed Bailey broke up Stafford’s shutout with a two-out, two-run homer in the ninth inning, as the Yankees won 3-2. The Giants bounced back to even the series with a 7-3 win in Game 4, as Chuck Hiller became the first National Leaguer to hit a grand slam in a World Series game in the seventh inning. Former Yankee Don Larsen got the win in relief of Juan Marichal in his only career World Series start. He exited in the fifth inning after suffering an injury attempting to lay down a bunt. In Game 5, the Yankees regained the series lead after a one-day rain delay, as Tom Tresh hit a three-run home run in the eighth inning to power a 5-3 win, with Ralph Terry earning a complete game win.
With the Yankees leading 3-2 in the series, the weather became the story of the Fall Classic as rains in San Francisco delayed Game 6 for four days. When the series resumed, Billy Pierce kept the Giants' hopes alive, allowing two runs on three hits, as he went the distance in a 5-2 win to force a seventh game.
The rains allowed the Yankees to give Ralph Terry another series start, which Jack Sanford opposed in a rematch of Game 2. Over the first four innings, neither pitcher blinked as the game was scoreless. In the fifth inning, the Yankees loaded the bases with nobody out and scratched out the first run on a double-play grounder off the bat of Tony Kubek. Terry continued to hang up zeroes, as he only allowed two hits over the first eight innings.
The Yankees, meanwhile, could not add to their lead as Sanford and Reliever Billy O’Dell silenced the Yankees bats, including Mickey Mantle, who struggled with a .120 average in the Fall Classic. Looking to tie or win the game, Matty Alou led off for the Giants, pinch-hitting for O’Dell, and reached base on a bunt base hit. Terry would strike out the next two batters, Felipe Alou and Chuck Hiller, to put the Yankees one out away. Willie Mays was the last obstacle and ripped a double into the right-field corner; with Matty Alou racing around the bases, Roger Maris quickly got the ball into the infield to prevent the tying run from crossing the plate. With runners on second and third, Ralph Terry chose to face Willie McCovey with two outs. McCovey ripped the second pitch he saw, but Bobby Richardson was positioned perfectly to make the catch, winning the game and the World Series.